Thirty-six years after his death, the final book written by Baptist ethicist T.B. Maston is being published by The T.B. Maston Foundation.
Maston taught Christian ethics at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, more than 40 years. He died in in 1988 at age 90. In the height of his career in the 1950s and ’60s, he was considered a pioneer among Southern Baptists for his progressive stances on race, women and the poor.
He was educated at Southwestern Seminary and at Yale University, where he studied under Richard Niebuhr. He returned to teach at Southwestern, where he developed the doctor of theology degree in Christian ethics.
T.B. Maston
Maston was a prolific author, not just of books but also of columns published in the network of state Baptist newspapers affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention.
Near the end of his life, he wrote Little Words That Challenge, devotional reflections on the meaning of nine brief verbs from the Bible, to inspire and challenge new Baptist foreign missionaries.
Now, the Maston Foundation is releasing individual chapters of that book online every two to four weeks at www.tbmaston.org.
Few scholars and devotional writers have reviewed these “imperatives from Jesus,” said Bill Tillman, the book’s lead editor. Tillman retired from Hardin-Simmons University’s Logsdon School of Theology, where he held the T.B. Maston Chair of Christian Ethics. He previously edited several of Maston’s books and is the coordinator of the Center for Congregational Ethics.
“Too often, these selected verbs have been ignored, projected only superficially,” Tillman said. “Maston demonstrated that a focus on a few words … have an energy. Themes that have stood the test of time are wonderful illustrations that (short) verbs from Jesus are not faddish but the bases for a movement.”
Little Words That Challenge will extend Maston’s influence to a new generation, said Carol Holcomb, a church historian and professor in the College of Christian Studies at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor.
“T.B. Maston shaped a generation of Baptist leaders during his 40-plus years as professor of Christian ethics.”
“T.B. Maston shaped a generation of Baptist leaders during his 40-plus years as professor of Christian ethics,” she said. “Maston’s voice was amplified through the thousands of students who carried his ethical vision from his classroom into their careers as ministers, professors, missionaries, denominational leaders and public activists. … A new generation will be inspired by Maston’s keen sense of justice, uncompromising ethics and unwavering compassion.”
David Morgan, executive director of the Maston Foundation, said the book accurately reflects Maston’s character as well as his teaching. It “explores a core theme in the life and teaching of Maston: Walk as Jesus walked,” he said. “There may be no better way to accomplish this than to heed imperatives from the lips of Jesus. … With splendid simplicity and a caring heart, Little Words offers both motivation and guidance for those who desire to fully live the Christian life.”
The Maston Foundation, founded in 1986, is a nonprofit organization that awards scholarships to graduate students majoring in Christian ethics. The foundation also conducts student retreats, including one each year for Young Maston Scholars, undergraduate students recommended by their universities’ Christian studies faculty.